Surprise Party Birthday Card

This is a card I made for a friend of a friend for whom she was planning a surprise party, I thought I would follow the theme through to her card as a reminder of the evening.

I’ve used my newspaper template and an assortment of clipart images.

The lady is made up with simple decoupage layers.

I’ve used Anita's 3D clear gloss finish on her eyes, shoes and cake, a tiny amount of Hero Arts micro hologram glitter on the candles and hat and an assortment of stars sprinkled here and there.

Overwhelmed

On Saturday I was inspired by another blog to display some of my cherished possessions ….. but I was also overwhelmed by generosity, can you imagine how excited I was when the postman asked me to sign for THIS parcel?

Especially when I saw who it was from…….. agggghhhhhh!!

Only Poundland!!!!!  Oh my life!

It was crammed with all manner of treasure.

It was like Christmas and my birthday rolled into one!

One of my projects has featured on the Poundland blog,http://www.poundlandblog.co.uk/?tag=pound-shop&paged=5  so they know about my blog, which makes me feel a bit famous ….. but this gift was a lovely and much appreciated surprise!

You know when the Queen gives Warrants to her favourite shops ….. I wonder if I can officially use the Poundland logo as my warrant as – Official Crafter of Poundland Goods!

Opening Up …Just a Little

 

I know I don’t open up much on my blog, I like to keep it strictly “craft”, it was a decision I made when I first started writing, but I've decided that occasionally it would be nice to wander off the path a little, and show you some of the things I love to find and collect ….. and sometimes add to my projects.

What gave me the idea was hopping to a new blog written by a lady who often comments on my blogs:- http://magweedsmayhem.blogspot.com/2010/08/bobbin-about.html . What I read inspired me to think about the things that  I have squirreled away but  not looked at for a while.  Lilibet wrote about her love for wooden cotton spools – we must be kindred spirits, as I too love old sewing paraphernalia, although I very rarely sew, because it makes my gums itch and reminds me of sewing lessons at school, when all I ever did was unpick,even my tacking had to be unpicked, as a result I am always disappointed with most things I sew.

But, I always look for old sewing boxes at carboots, people almost give them away, thinking that they are worthless when I see them as priceless treasure trove, you never know what you are going to find ….. as you can see from my pictures.

I love the thought of shoulder ribbons and using "potato" coloured darning thread.

And look at this wonderful receipt

I like to ponder upon the women who’s boxes these once were, who ordered lassie, omo, vim and cake (I wonder what sort of cake it was!)

But it was Lilibet’s comments about the cotton reels that made me think and get  my Gran’s old sewing basket out. When she died it was the only thing I wanted because this is what she used/touched almost every day for years, and years and years.

It seemed so sad that I just keep it on the top shelf in one of my cupboards, but then I had an Ulrika moment and looked up at the empty IKEA memory boxes on my nic-nacky shelves  ………..

................and I sorted out all the wooden cotton reels and her thimble and put them in one of the boxes.

I am dead chuffed ...

Thank you Lilibet, and all this happened before 9.00am on a Saturday morning! I wonder what will inspired me to fill the other boxes.

Doodled Thank You Card

I doodled the “Thank You” using a fine liner pen and my new Promarkers, then got stuck for a suitable background paper. It took a while, but in the end I plumped for this polka dot paper with silver mat and layering.

And the winner is .......

Well done Rustyhammer (check out her WONDERFUL blog  - http://rustyhammer.blogspot.com/), you have won a voucher worth £40 from CSN Stores in my Anniversary Giveaway!  Woooo Hoooo Hooooo!

White and Gold Flower Card

This card breaks one of my few  rules of card making – it’s always cream and gold or white and silver but the lady who ordered this card asked for “very pretty, using white and gold”

It’s a design I have used several times before, but this time I have used the specific words of the sender.

Perhaps not a combination I would have chosen, the white is too harsh against the warm gold. I have never punched flowers using this gold paper before and I like the effect ….. perhaps for small Christmas wreath card ……

Wedding Book ….. Something Old, Something New ….

I’ve shown you this idea about a year ago, but though the words are the same, the embellishments change, so I thought I would show you the one that I finished on Tuesday night.

And I won’t rabbit on …. I’ll let the pictures tell the story.

On the left hand pages of the book I make a pocket and add a couple of cards for the giver and bridesmaids etc. to write little messages.

The book is placed in a plain box (made using my box maker from e-bay)

But I like to embellish the top a little.

And this is a view of my desk as I was making the book, while watching “The Great British Bake Off”

Altered Canvas Bag

I have started to alter the bag I got from the carboot on Monday. I couldn’t believe it when I found that the straps actually come off, making working on them so much easier, how brilliant is that?

I had a look in my ribbon box and found  this red polka dot grosgrain ribbon which is just perfect. I have glued it onto the bag with heavy duty PVA, turning over the ends so they don’t fray.  I know I could have sewn on the ribbon, but that’s not my style, too slow! And as this bag is a bit of fun, I am not planning on its longevity or durability!

I was going to get a set of Accessorize pin badges (£3 for 4) to embellish it until Lisa pointed out that I could make my own ….doh,  I’d forgotten about my badge maker,…… so that’s my next job!

Football Birthday Card

This card is made using the SMIRK for Him decoupage pad (£7.99) – it contains enough designs to make at least 24 cards.

I have used “real” grass for it – well almost, it’s the grass they use for model railways etc. I think it cost about £2.99 a roll from Hobbycrafts – it’s a nice little twist making very simple card just that little bit more special.

Free Giveaway To Celebrate “Fiddle Farts” 1st Blogging Birthday

*** THIS GIVEAWAY WILL REMAIN AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE UNTIL THE CLOSING DATE, HOWEVER MY DAILY CRAFTING POSTS WILL STILL CONTINUE AS NORMAL DIRECTLY UNDER THIS ONE ***

Two blogs, two brilliant giveaways! To celebrate one year of Fiddle Fart  the fantastic people at CSN Stores will be giving one of my lucky readers a £40 gift voucher to use in one of their online stores! They’ve got everything from ceiling lights to bakeware and cookware and furniture

I’ve always wanted a cake stand like this, my rock buns would look so much better if I had something like this to put them on!!!

For a chance to win the £40 gift voucher just leave a comment on this post or for a couple of extra chances become a follower, or SPREAD the word about our giveaway on your blog and/or beyond……. for each option, please leave a separate comment on this post with a link to where you have posted about it.

And I also love this cup and saucer set !

The  winner will be drawn from my large salad bowl on Friday 3rd September when I get home from work and the winners name posted. Please leave your comments here by 5.00am (GMT)  Friday 3rd September …………GOOD LUCK!!

IF YOU CAN'T POST A COMMENT BECAUSE YOU DON'T HAVE A BLOGGER ACCOUNT ETC. JUST E-MAIL ME WITH YOUR COMMENT AND I'LL COPY AND PASTE IT INTO THE COMMENT BOX FOR YOU, SO THAT EVERYONE HAS A CHANCE TO ENTER.

And ....... if you would like a second chance of winning this giveaway - pop over to Mum's Monkey where he and Darrell have another £40 voucher from CSN to win ....

PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD!

Car Boot Bargains – August Bank Holiday Monday

Oh my life, you will never know how much I love a good rummage, especially when I come back with treasures beyond my wildest dreams.  Can you believe that I made a list of things to look for and I came back with four of them! I am so excited I don’t know where to start ….

Ok ….. I will do them in reverse order of excitement, building up to a crescendo of absolute joy!!

Largish  glass dish -  I saw it, I liked it, I bought it ….. £1 !

Three wooden picture frames ….. 50p each, when I saw them I thought shabby chic, and as I type, this one is in the garden drying after its first coat of paint …. I will sand it down later to shabby it and if I am happy with the result, I will do the other two …. the centre of the flowers in each corner are begging for large clear flat backed gems, but for the sake of good taste I will resist! I am also wondering weather to replace the glass for a mirror.

I have an old fashioned taste in jewellery, I know this isn’t old but I love the colours and shapes, it’s a bit art nouveau – 50p – nabbed it!

The drawers were the first thing on my list – £2.50 was my limit  but 50p grabbed it!  I want it to alter, then give it as a present. I have done one already, but you will have to wait a little while to see it as I have scheduled it for later.

This brocade effect pillowcase may seem an odd thing to put on my list, but I saw it on the market about two weeks ago and have regretted not buying it ever since but hoped it would still be in the huge box where I first saw it. (The car boot joins the market on Bank Holidays).  It cost £1 and with some flat backed gems and a length of black/silver velvet ribbon, it’s going to make the most stunning Christmas present sack ever!

This canvas/cotton Topshop bag was another “look for” on my list and cost another £1.

I saw the bag below on Saturday in Accessorize, but it  was £28.00 – so I thought, if I could find a similar bag, I could embellish it myself with some of the bits I have on my shelves, save a huge amount of money and still be on trend! (I’ve been watching too much Gok me thinks!).

…….. And finally zee piece de resistance ….. I NEVER EVER thought in my wildest dreams I would find something like this ……

…. a Hidesign messenger/work bag (it looks nothing in the picture I know), but, when new, it would cost silly money -  £100 plus – I paid 50p!  It has three compartments, two with zips and has the most delicious leathery smell! The leather is so soft and I have set about polishing it with loving care.  I need to sew about 1.5 inches of one zip where it has come undone and the same in one of the corners, but otherwise it is perfect with a worn comfortableness, if you know what I mean. You can imagine how thrilled I am as I have been looking for something like this on e-bay for ages and although I have made lots of bids, bags I have fancied have sold way beyond my means …… Oh what a perfect day!